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what was below?

zeph’s pop culture quiz #17
The screencap got a bit dark, so I’ll explain: A man is pulling at an iron ring to open a trapdoor. What does he expect to be down there, what was below the trapdoor?

As I deem this to be a hard one, here’s another hint: The Lady in the picture—what is she? Ultimately her fate has something to do with what was below the trapdoor.
You can answer either of the two questions. But I guess if you can answer one, you’ll know the solution to the other one, too.
Just leave a comment with your educated guess—you can ask for additional hints, too. [Leaving a comment is easy; just click the ‘Leave a comment’ at the end of the post and fill in the form. If it’s the first time you post a comment, it will be held for moderation. But I am constantly checking, and once I’ve approved a comment, your next ones won’t be held, but published immediately by the system.]

UPDATE 1 (28 February 2012):
Since nobody seems fit to guess anything, here are some more hints: The movie in question is a strange genre-mix and has an absolute top-notch cast—despite of that, and despite of the, at least to my eye, interesting narration, dramaturgy, and cinematography it today is a ‘forgotten movie.’ For you visually oriented types, here are yet two more screencaps:

Additionally I could ask: Who is operating there?

UPDATE 2 (01 March 2012):
As everybody seems to have no clue at all or to be on holiday—or both—here is yet another screencap. Now you at least know who is operating:

UPDATE 3 and solution (05 March 2012):
This time two contestants solved the riddle in cooperation—S.A.S. and Alhambra. Congratulations! But without Alexander Rabitsch recognizing the immortal [Ladies and Gentlemen, please rise from your seats]↑Vincent Price, they wouldn’t have had a chance, I guess ;-) The movie in question is ‘↑Scream and Scream Again‘ (Hessler 1970), based on the novel ‘The Disorientated Man’ by Peter Saxon (1967).
The movie is a strange genre mix—it starts out as a horror thriller, then becomes a police/detective mystery, suddenly a strand of cold war political thriller breaks in, and ultimately it turns into cyberpunkish science fiction. The cast encompasses the finest horror actors from the 1960s: Vincent Price, ↑Peter Cushing, and ↑Christopher Lee. Price and Cushing never meet in the movie, Price and Lee meet in the showdown at the very end. To my knowledge the only other movie all three of them are in together is ‘↑House of the Long Shadows‘ (Walker 1983).
Trying to give away not too many spoilers [I deem the movie absolutely worthwhile watching], here are the solutions to the questions:
Below the trapdoor was a pit filled with acid. It was there, because when a brave forensic investigator returns to the scene for the second time and opens the trapdoor, the acid is gone.
The surgery nurse Jane (↑Uta Levka) is a ‘composite,’ meaning she was created out of body parts from different persons, plus a synthetic substance.
As I didn’t ask a specific question concerning the hand in the third screencap, I’ll leave it at that ;-)
In the operating room of course Vincent Price as ‘Dr. Browning’ (‘Dr. Mabuse’ in the ↑German version) is at work, creating the composites.

Finally some contestants in here—two Ladies cooperating and on the heels of the immortal (Ladies and Gentlemen, please rise from your seats) Vincent Price! :-) You are somewhat close, Ladies, but sorry, no, it ain’t ‘Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine’ (Taurog 1965).

Again: somewhat close, but no, she isn’t a cyborg by the definition, but it is correct that in a way she is artificial. Thing is that ‘what she is’ in the movie is explained by a word which exactly describes the process by which she was made.

All right, this week’s flowers go to S.A.S. and Alhambra, congratulations! It indeed is ‘Scream and scream again’ (Hessler 1970). And yes, the surgery nurse pictured is a ‘composite.’ But no, the operating room was not below the trapdoor, there rather was an acid pit. The surgeon was called ‘Dr. Browning,’ not Mabuse ;-) I’ll update the post as soon as possible.